ShortBookandScribes #BookReview – Jay-Jay and the Carnival by Sue Wickstead @JayJayBus @rararesources #BlogTour + #Giveaway #ChildrensBooks
I’m so pleased to be reviewing my third Jay-Jay book today. My thanks to Sue Wickstead for sending it to me and to Rachel Gilbey from Rachel’s Random Resources for the place on the tour.
Jay-Jay the Supersonic Bus is a brightly coloured playbus full of toys. He’s always ready for adventure, and after an eventful summer the bus is ready for his journey to the carnival. The children are also excited – but what will happen on the way?
It’s always nice to catch up with Jay-Jay and find out what his latest adventure will be. This is the third of the books I have read with my five year old son and each one is an absolute pleasure.
Jay-Jay is a double decker bus converted into a playbus for children to have fun aboard. He’s bright and colourful and the children love him. At the end of the school holidays there is a carnival and Jay-Jay is going to be part of the parade but on the way he breaks down. Oh no! His driver, in his funky stripy jacket doesn’t know what to do but luckily a man in a big black car stops and rings a mechanic who comes to fix Jay-Jay straightaway so he doesn’t miss the carnival.
The parade itself is fantastic. There is a band, people are dressed up in all manner of costumes and great fun is had by all. Jay-Jay gets the star prize and it’s presented to him by….yes, you guessed it…..the man in the suit who just happens to be the mayor.
This is another gorgeous book for children. It’s vibrant with really engaging illustrations and all was well in the end for Jay-Jay which is what we both wanted to hear. I don’t know if there are any more Jay-Jay books but I’m wondering what he’s going to get up to next.
All in all, this is a really lovely book for young children and we particularly enjoyed the fairground/carnival happy feel to it.
Giveaway to Win 1 x Paperback copy of Daisy Daydream the Nursery Rhyme Bus (UK Only)
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I am a teacher and an author and have currently written six children’s picture books with a bus theme.
For over 20 years, alongside my teaching career, I worked with a Children’s Charity, The Bewbush Playbus Association, which led me to write a photographic history book about it.
I soon found that many children had never been on a bus before, let alone a ‘Playbus’ and they wanted to know more. I decided to write a fictional tale about the bus, his number plate JJK261 gave him his name.
‘Jay-Jay the Supersonic Bus,’ came out in print in 2014. It is the story behind the original bus and is his journey from a scrap-yard to being changed into a playbus for children to play in. From Fact to fiction the bus journey continued.
This story has now been followed by five more picture books.
I also undertake events and author bookings and love to share the story. There are also a few more stories in the writing process, with links to real events and buses.
The story has been read in many schools in the south-East of England, where I teach as a cover teacher, it is always well received and certainly different.
I am glad you have joined in learning about Jay-Jay and his adventures.
There are a few more tales to be told (not always about Jay-Jay but certainly buses feature somewhere… at the moment)
I am glad you enjoyed the Carnival Parade, it certainly was an adventure for the real bus.
We didn’t break down but it was always a worry, even more so when in the parade itself and having to drive so slow. But buses can move slowly.
If we did break down we managed to get rescued, there was always someone who would stop and offer help.